Israel and Its Neighbors: Geographic Passport

Students are introduced to the physical geography of Israel, Palestinian Territories, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon. They identify significant geographical features, population density, primary people groups, and significant geographical challenges for three of the countries. Then they research and develop a video script for the same aspects of Lebanon.

This learning experience is designed for device-enabled classrooms. The teacher
guides the lesson, and students use embedded resources, social media skills, and
critical thinking skills to actively participate. To get access to a free version of the
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Teacher Pack

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Here are the teacher pack items for Israel and Its Neighbors: Geographic Passport:

In this experience, students are introduced to the physical geography of Israel, Palestinian Territories, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon. They identify significant geographical features, population density, primary people groups, and significant geographical challenges for three of the countries. Then they research and develop a video script for the same aspects of Lebanon.

Which countries are part of the Middle East? To list more than one, separate the countries with a comma, like this: Rome, Paris.

Post your answer

There is no definitive list of which countries are in the Middle East. The following countries are commonly included: Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Jordan, Egypt, the Palestinian Territories, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Yemen, Oman, Bahrain, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Iraq, and Iran.

African countries with a significant Muslim population are sometimes included: Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, Sudan, and Libya. In addition, Afghanistan and Pakistan are sometimes discussed in connection with the Middle East. The World Factbook includes as part of the Middle East the Muslim countries of the former Soviet Union: Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Armenia.

In this lesson, you will focus on several Middle Eastern countries. They are colored in yellow on the map below.

Identify any of the countries or bodies of water in this map that you can.

When everyone is ready to continue, unlock the next part.

Compare your map to the one below. If you didn’t already identify the countries correctly, edit your map now.

Explain that in this experience, students will be covering Israel and its neighbors, another area that is considered part of the Middle East. Point out to students that the Palestinian Territories are not internationally recognized as a country, and therefore they are not marked on many maps. The territories contain two distinct blocks: the West Bank (of the Jordan River) and the Gaza Strip.

Give students the chance to state what they already know about this part of the world. They may know something about the ongoing conflicts in the region.